It's Time to Fight for Our Lives

"What do you think? Kill them," Lin Mu ordered. It seemed he had no intention of dealing with Ye Yuexin and Itachi Uchiha himself.

If it wasn't because he looked down on the two of them, then these twins must have some special trick up their sleeves.

Combined attacks weren't uncommon among ninja. The most famous example was probably the A-B Duo's Lightning Bomb from the Hidden Cloud Village.

Seeing that both twins wielded swords, their strength probably lay in their swordsmanship.

Indeed, wandering ninja basically didn't know any ninjutsu. Don't be fooled by how ninjutsu seemed to be everywhere in the anime.

In reality, almost all ninjutsu was kept within the established ninja villages. Very little of it made its way outside.

And don't talk about killing a ninja and stealing the ninjutsu scrolls he carried.

Ninja generally memorized their techniques. They weren't like the martial arts novels, with all sorts of secret manuals.

At the order, the twins gripped their swords and charged at Ye Yuexin and Itachi.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique." Itachi, standing beside Ye Yuexin, quickly formed hand seals, and a huge ball of flame hurtled toward the twins.

The blazing fire seemed to make the air grow scorching in an instant.

The twin ninja reacted quickly. They shoved each other aside and swiftly escaped the Great Fireball's range.

Their combat experience was clearly extensive. They got completely clear of the attack.

With two twin ninja whose teamwork was nearly flawless, and Lin Mu still watching them from behind, Ye Yuexin felt the battle was getting tense. It looked like he'd have to fight for his life again.

What had happened to his luck lately? Why did he keep having to fight for his life at the drop of a hat?

He turned to Itachi. "You take the twins. No problem, right?"

"Those two aren't enough to measure my strength." Itachi leaped high and landed between them.

Ye Yuexin trusted Itachi. He was destined to become one of the strongest, after all. There was no way he'd fall here.

He slowly turned to Lin Mu and gave him a slightly arrogant grin. "I get the feeling you were looking down on me just now. So, are you ready to cry after I beat you?"

"So you're the captain of this little squad," Lin Mu said with a laugh, seeing that Itachi had followed Ye Yuexin's orders. "Then you must be even more talented than that kid."

"This is wonderful! This mission was already a great achievement. Now I can add the heads of two more geniuses to my tally. I'm sure my standing will rise in no time."

"You're celebrating too soon. We haven't decided who's the lamb and who's the tiger yet." Ye Yuexin's figure flashed, his speed nearly at its current limit.

Propelled by the wind, he appeared in front of Lin Mu in an instant and swung his leg in a sweeping kick.

Lin Mu's strength was indeed terrifying. He could keep up even with Ye Yuexin's top speed.

He punched toward the foot coming at him. This was undoubtedly the most fearsome opponent Ye Yuexin had faced so far.

But speed wasn't the greatest strength of Ye Yuexin's footwork. It was the wind's strange, elusive nature.

Still in midair, Ye Yuexin twisted his body in an unusual way. With no foothold at all, he used the wind's force to abruptly change direction and end up behind Lin Mu, without slowing down in the slightest.

He followed up with another sweeping kick. Lin Mu's fist was still out in front, and his balance had shifted. It was too late to block or dodge.

With a thud, Lin Mu was kicked into the woods.

The loud impact drew Itachi's attention. Though he'd already thought highly of Ye Yuexin's strength, he hadn't expected him to gain the upper hand so quickly.

Seeing the twins hesitate for a moment, Itachi decided he should end the fight quickly. He couldn't afford to fall too far behind, either.

When they saw Itachi charging at them, the twins reaffirmed their resolve and resumed fighting together.

Their swords weren't just fast. The two of them combined their attacks with even greater precision.

Itachi gradually began to suffer injuries. They were only superficial, but blood had already started to seep out.

If Ye Yuexin had been here to watch, he would surely have teased Itachi again.

You're a ninja who specializes in fighting from a distance, yet you insist on getting close and using taijutsu against two opponents who specialize in close combat and wield swords. Is there something wrong with your head?

Gradually, Itachi seemed to realize the problem, too.

The twins' teamwork was simply too tight. Things would only get worse if this continued. He had to find a way to break free from their attacks.

But they'd already launched their assault. Escaping so easily wasn't going to be simple.

Still, for Itachi, it might not be that difficult. His special advantage had just come into play.

His eyes turned red, a lone tomoe spinning rapidly in each. As he turned, their gazes met, and he immediately cast a hypnotic genjutsu.

One of the twins froze for a moment. That brief pause was all Itachi needed to form hand seals.

He performed the Substitution Technique.

The blade swept through, and Itachi's body turned into a wooden post.

This was the perfect opportunity. The post was fairly thick, enough to block one twin's view as they attacked from both sides.

Itachi's target was the ninja he'd just hit with a technique. He was the only one whose thoughts had faltered for a moment.

No wonder Itachi was so formidable. His battle instincts were incredible. He could seize even a fleeting opening like that.

After substituting himself behind the wandering ninja, Itachi sent several kunai flying. They struck the ninja in the back and the nape of his neck.

All of this happened in an instant.

Before the wooden post had even hit the ground, the other ninja had already cut it apart. By then, Itachi had retreated two meters.

"Xiao Wu!" The ninja who had cut through the post cried out when he saw the blood trickling from his companion's mouth.

But the ninja named Xiao Wu seemed unable to hear him. After calling out, "Brother Yemu," he slowly fell to the ground and stopped breathing.

"Damn brat, I'll drink your blood!" The remaining ninja, Yemu, glared at him with bloodshot eyes.

He flung the sword in his hand like a shuriken. Anyone who wielded a sword cherished their weapon.

Losing one's weapon was as good as dying. If someone like Yemu threw his weapon away, it proved he had an even more powerful trick up his sleeve.

Sure enough, Yemu began forming hand seals.

Itachi easily dodged the sword. Seeing what was happening, he quickly charged at Yemu, clearly intent on stopping him from completing the hand seals.

When Itachi rushed in, Yemu made no attempt to dodge. He just kept forming hand seals. Itachi seized the opening, moved out of the way of Yemu's front, and stabbed toward his neck with a kunai from the side.

The update was delayed a little. I'm sorry for keeping everyone waiting!